Math, Madison, food, the Orioles, books, my kids.

Imraan Coovadia on South African fiction

During the late 20th century, the black-white struggle in South Africa interested Americans because it looked like an African version of the civil rights movement. But it never was. We seem to have fulfilled some imaginative need in the 1980s and 90s. We were grateful for the interest. But we’re not actively persecuting anybody nowadays. As a result, people aren’t particularly interested in what’s happening here any more, except for the occasional Aids, infidelity and polygamy controversy. Nowadays, people are more interested in reading about how terrible Zimbabwe is. They’ve moved on.

Imraan’s new novel, High Low In-Between, won the 2010 South African Sunday Times Fiction Prize. It’s not out in the US, but you can mail-order it. I just got mine.